Warren Smith Testimony: Descending Into the New Age Movement

Dr. David Reagan and I were delighted to have as our guest on Christ in Prophecy Warren Smith, the author of the book The Light that Was Dark. This fascinating book tells Warren’s touching story of how in his search for a Savior he got sidetracked into the occultic darkness of the New Age Movement. From his many years of experience under that influence, Warren now has dedicated his life to warning Christians about the dangers of the New Age and help us recognize how we can avoid these satanic influences from creeping into our churches.

The Reverse Sinner’s Prayer

Nathan Jones: Warren, I would love to hear your personal story about how you fell into the New Age Movement.

Warren Smith: I wish I could say it was some kind of great spiritual journey on my part, but it had to do with a waitress that I was fascinated with.

Nathan Jones: Isn’t it always a woman?

Warren Smith: I’m afraid that sometimes it is.

I asked her out and had her over to my house for dinner. In the course of the evening’s conversation, she said that she had a friend of a friend who was coming into town. She was a psychic, and so asked if I would like to have a psychic reading. Coming from Westport, Connecticut, which is a fairly conservative town, I was a little bit reluctant to get involved with a psychic. But, to ingratiate myself with the waitress, I said, “Sure, why not?”

So, I had the psychic reading. The woman was from Canada. She was telling me all sorts of things about myself that she had no business knowing. I mean, these were not things that I had shared with the waitress, so these were not things that she would have known. I was totally enraptured with what she was telling me, and I was thinking, “Wow, she is really in touch with something!”

While this woman was going through this psychic reading, there was a tingling sensation over my head that I had never experienced before. It was very bazaar. I’m sitting there wondering, “What’s going on?” She turns to me and she asks, “Do you realize that there is a ball of light over your head right now?” I said, “I don’t know what that is, but I can feel there is something up there.” And, she revealed, “It’s a ball of light.” I asked her, “What’s the ball of light doing up there?” She answered, “You have a lot of help on the other side.” So, I asked, “What do you mean by the ‘other side’?” Her answer was, “Angels, loved ones that have passed on, spiritual beings that are interested in your welfare — they all want to help you and come into your life.” Then she advised, “But you have to ask them. It has to be voluntary on your part.”

Nathan Jones: These spirits were kind of knocking on the door of your life, so to speak? They were hoping to be invited in?

Warren Smith: Yes. For the spirits to come into my life, it was kind of like you had to be willing by your own volition.

At that time I lived in a canyon in Northern California. I had a flat roof house. That evening I lay on the flat roof of my house looking up at the starry night sky, and I kind of flash backed over my whole life and all the events that had brought me to that point. I felt like I was about to do something very, very significant, and it was, but I didn’t realize that it was dangerous.

Then I said, “All of you on the other side, I want your help in my life. I want to be more spiritual. I want to grow.” Any Christian who knows the dangers of the New Age and the Occult knows what I just did was kind of like a reverse sinner’s prayer. I did the opposite of asking Jesus Christ into my life, which I had no idea what that was about at that point and time.

Encounter With a Guru

Nathan Jones: You had no Christian background beforehand?

Warren Smith: The only background I had was a very liberal, liberal church that never talked about the reality of evil, or a devil, or a victory on the cross of Calvary. It was just a very washed out church. We sang a few hymns. I left church altogether when I went to college. I had my back to the church. I never thought of going to church when I was in college. I was in a fraternity instead.

Well, right after I made that “prayer,” in the coming weeks and months all of sudden I started getting spiritual experiences and meeting interesting people. It’s like I was being jet propelled into a whole new spiritual experience.

That is one of the dangers of the New Age — the fact that you go on spiritual experience. You go on what’s meant to be experiences, like when things would happen where I would go, “Oh, it was meant to be.” These coincidences lined up.

That is how I got involved in the next step of my journey, which was with Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, who is an Indian guru. He was in India at the time when I got involved with him. The circumstances were fairly complicated, but I ended up on the top of a mountain on New Year’s Eve in Big Sur, California, one of the most beautiful spots on the California coast. I had just bought a book by the Indian Master Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh because I had wanted to start the New Year off spiritual. I had his book in my hands.

Usually people stay down in these cabins at the bottom of Deetjen’s Lodge, but the owner came up to me and he looked deep into my eyes and he asked, “How would you like to stay on top of this mountain tonight?” I went, “Sure.” So, at sunset, way up on top of the mountain, I found there was a cabin up there. When we got up there it was like being in Heaven. There were just clouds from horizon to horizon. It was an incredible setting!

I had never heard of this guy, Rajneesh, but I had his book in my hand. I went into the cabin up there and put my suitcase on the ground. By the bedside there was another book — by Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh! It was kind of like, “Whoa! Whoa! This is meant to be.”

I just want to stop and caution people that when somebody gives you a copy of a supposed Christian book and it’s not really Christian, like for example The Shack, just because somebody in the morning asks, “Hey, have you read The Shack?”, or somebody later in the afternoon asks the same thing, don’t think that God is saying, “Hey, you should read The Shack.” It may seem like the coincidence is meant to be from God, but it can also be meant to be from the Devil.

In the second part of Warren Smith’s fascinating testimony of how he was saved out of the New Age Movement, Warren shares his life living by the book A Course of Miracles and the lies that Oprah teaches from that book.

Nathan, I have been watching your program for the past year and have found it very informative until Smith and his warnings about the New Age. I was shocked and upset at this crackpot commentary. I was actually yelling at my TV over comments that were made. I was aghast at his ideas. Now I am skeptical about your whole program. I was very disappointed to see these ideas connected with your show.

Karen, the difference is that in New Age thought, God is in everybody and everything. Scripture tells us that is not true. The only people who are indwelt by God, the Holy Spirit, are those who believe in Christ. We receive the Holy Spirit at the time of our new birth.

Spiritgirl54, your comments caused me to watch both episodes which were both about EXPOSING new age things, not ENDORSING them. I don't understand why you are upset with that.

Karen, Christians may have the Holy Spirit indwelling in us, but not all people as the New Agers teach. Plus, they teach not just an indwelling, but that we are fully "God" as well. That's very different than what God's Word the Bible teaches.

Nathan,Thanks for your response. My greatest objections were comments made that spoke against the Course of Miracles that were based on one person's ideas involving some kind of "negative energy" that he thought his wife was experiencing. This seems like very flimsey evidence to launch an attack on anything. The Course of Miracles is all about belief in Jesus and learning how to become more aware of the Holy Spirit. Anyone believing in Jesus would have the Holy Spirit wouldn't they? A broad concept like "negative energy" is very difficult to identify and to try to blame the Course of Miracles or any other thought system for it seems like it would be hard to prove and just doesn't make sense. I question the experience behind the author and his book and wonder if the negative energy is with him. I never comment about programs but this time I just couldn't let this go by. I am glad to see you are back to Bible topics this week.

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Lamb & Lion Ministries was established for the purpose of proclaiming the soon return of Jesus. We do not believe it is possible to know the date when Jesus will return. But we do believe it is possible to know the season of the Lord's return, and it is our conviction that we are living in that season...